FIC - Knocked Upside the Head (Original)
Title: Knocked Upside the Head
Fandom: Scattership (Original) (Once known as Kittara and Jaleel - memories and tags to be modified as I get the chance)
Prompt: 134- Delectable
Warnings: None
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1,785
Summary: Kittara always jumps without looking. How far will JD follow?
“JD?” a voice called. He glanced at Mr. Brannick, and turned when he got a dismissive nod. He’d already dropped off the canteens with some of the supply coordinators, so he turned with a ready smile for Sylph. The Med was as strangely familiar as Mr. Brannick, and Jaleel felt a long forgotten sense of serenity when he was around her. “I needed to ask you something, would you come with me to the Med bay?”
JD nodded. Sylph seemed to have picked up on Mistress Kittara’s attempts to reintroduce him to regular society, but where Mistress Kittara was naturally a leader, unused to needing permission let alone asking for compliance, Miss Sylph always asked him if he would like to do whatever it was she needed done. She knew he viewed the questions as a soft, polite way of phrasing an order, but that tiny bit of respect flushed his cheeks every time. Once they were in the Med bay, Sylph pulled out a stool and sat to face him. He’d automatically settled on the bed. Every time he saw her in the Med bay that bed was where he’d ended.
“Now, you have to know that this is your choice, JD,” Sylph started. JD nodded. She was being very serious today, more so than usual for her. “Someone has come to me with a request to use your DNA to fertilize an egg for her.”
JD blinked. “My child?” he asked.
“Yes,” Sylph nodded. “And the pregnancy is going to have consequences outside of just a child.” Sylph knew that JD was intelligent; she was hoping that he would ask the right questions.
There was a sad light in JD’s eyes. “She doesn’t want a baby just to have a baby?” Damn. Sylph knew JD loved children. Most of the crew knew how much JD loved children. The young man seemed to have no slave mentalities at all when a child was talking with him or an infant slept in his arms. There was something that strengthened inside of him every time was with children, and Sylph could do a lot of damage to JD and Kittara if she handled this badly.
“She does want the child,” Sylph hastened to reassure the man. “And she wished for no other father than you.” She held her breath as JD’s face and body slid back into neutral attentiveness. JD’s bland focus had been a constant for nearly two months, but she was beginning to learn the subtle emotions of her friend. “But there are outside factors that led to her making this choice now.” Sylph leaned forward, trying to push the thoughts into JD’s head.
“Mistress Kittara?” He asked. Sylph smiled, relieved that she didn’t have to blatantly break confidentiality, not that Kittara had asked for it. JD tipped his head to the side, eyes falling to the floor. “How will a pregnancy affect the betrothal?” Sylph could have kissed the man. He was every bit as quick as she’d come to expect, and she suspected that he really would choose to protect his Mistress above following her whim this time.
“It will push back the official binding of the caravans,” Sylph said. Then she saw it: a flicker of emotion. She couldn’t tell if it was anger or joy, but it was something that she had not seen in JD before. “The Council will likely push the marriage through, despite the pregnancy, though.”
JD frowned at her for a long moment, thinking, and Sylph knew that somewhere, in the back of his mind and hidden by horrible experiences through his young years, he could have been as polished a politician as some of the Council members. He was dissecting the ramifications even farther than Sylph had, she suspected. Where would he come out?
“This baby won’t stop the arrangement?” he asked. His green eyes met and held hers, and she felt caged power rattling at the chains.
“Not with the Council backing it,” she said. She couldn’t figure JD out sometimes. He tended to fade into the background, a good servant, unseen and unnoticed, prompt and thorough, and Sylph knew that only a few people had seen his moments of self-possession, where he grabbed your attention with nothing more than the way he held his head. She kept wondering what he had been before falling into slavery for there was no doubt that he had not been born to it. He nodded, a gently regal move very similar to Kittara when she was playing at being diplomatic.
“Then she can have my child,” he said, holding out his finger. Sylph was reaching for the blood syringe before she’d realized he’d chosen the opposite of what she’d been hoping. But then, there was a softly wistful, sad look lingering in JD’s eyes, and Sylph realized that once the marriage had been established, he would likely never have another chance to have a child with Kittara. And everyone on the ship had seen how fast JD had fallen in love with their captain. They all knew that he would probably never do anything about it, either.
Oh, dear. She took the blood sample and sent him back to Kittara’s chambers. This could be one of Kittara’s greatest ideas, or one of her worst ever disasters.
**
A child. Kittara couldn’t quite believe that she’d made the request, honestly, and she certainly couldn’t believe that JD had granted it. A giddy feeling, fluttering about somewhere south of her heart, had her grinning at every mother and child she passed. Some of the women gave her sly smirks, and Kittara knew that her delectable little secret was likely twittering in the ears of her crew. It didn’t matter. Because she’d felt JD’s gaze much more heavily for the past few days, and it didn’t unnerve her like it had barely a month ago. In fact, every time she sensed JD so fully focused on her, she could feel her shoulders pulling back, her spine straightening to stand tall, her confidence positively bubbling with some strange joy. Pride tugged her head up, and she couldn’t help but imagine herself as a lioness preening under the attention of a strong male.
But a child. How had she come up with such a hare-brained idea? Especially as she and her crew closed in on the last, tenacious hide-outs of the pirates. They were going into battle, and she wanted to be compromised by pregnancy? Her crew would make her sit the battle out; children were nigh on sacred to her people, and she would never be able to justify endangering the in-vitro heir in such a way. Of course, this first child was not guaranteed to be Heir. The golden eyes were only passed down once, and JD’s genetics might not support the necessary coding for her first-born to be the Heir to the Clans. Kittara rather hoped he or she would get JD’s bright green, really. Even if she would then have no other recourse but having a child or two through Geraint; disgusted as the thought made her, the arrogant man was from a very prominent family line.
So, here she sat, watching Sylph mix and separate and mix again in the small room off of the Med lab. That was going to be her viable embryo in just another few minutes. She looked down at JD, comfortably settled at her feet, and couldn’t help but wonder what was going through his head? Why had he agreed? Was there some reason or did he really still feel so trapped and caged that he could not deny Kittara any random urge that overcame her? She had thought he was getting better: he’d begun to venture into the ship without her or Cetlan at his side, had stopped flinching every time she raised her voice, and had even questioned her. Once. He’d nearly collapsed at her feet, trembling in fear, but he’d talked back to her. That was good. Yet, there he sat, seemingly at peace with the universe, at her feet.
Kittara wasn’t blind. She’d known that JD would never again be able to interact with other people on quite the same levels as regular society, but she’d hoped that he could relearn things that she considered to be basic rights. Like understanding that his opinions and wants and needs should be respected if not always granted. But maybe she was being too idealistic. Cetlan liked to tell her that she saw the world as she wanted it to be and not how it truly was. Was that what she was doing with JD? Was she pushing him out of a comfortable place that he may want or need in a way she could never understand? She had wanted to give him a child. She knew that a lot of his recent solo adventures nearly always ended at the nursery, and Kittara peeked in on him every so-often, saw his naturally gentle, soothing influence surrounded by children. It was a sight that she wanted to see every day for the rest of her life, honestly.
But did JD want children of his own? Would he accept that he was a father, take on the responsibility of another life depending on him and his decisions? If he couldn’t make those decisions, would this hurt his foundling image of himself? Make him suffer needlessly? Kittara really hated it when her unexpected decisions suddenly sprouted devastating consequences.
“So, here’s the zygote.” Sylph turned around brandishing a syringe like it was going to cure the common cold. Kittara knew that there wasn’t much to see about one fertilized egg, but the blob in the middle of some viscous liquid was a strange disappointment. She glanced down and saw JD intently focused on the small, glass vial.
“JD?” she asked. His green eyes looked up at her. He seemed expectant and excited, and she smiled down at him. She couldn’t ask him if he was sure. Anything that made him look like a happily nervous wreck was good enough for her. She nodded to Sylph and laid back. The pale green ceiling had nothing on the jade green eyes now hovering over Sylph’s shoulder. No going back, she thought as Sylph pressed the vial to the soft skin of her stomach. A gentle pressure and drawn out hiss, and the Med was bustling around the bed and unrolling screens.
“You’ll stay right there for another two hours, Captain,” Sylph snapped before Kittara had even thought of rolling over. “We need to make sure the zygote implants properly.” JD’s fingers brushed Kittara’s wrist. She turned her hand and threaded her fingers through his. No going back.
~JJ~
x-posted at tamingthemuse
Fandom: Scattership (Original) (Once known as Kittara and Jaleel - memories and tags to be modified as I get the chance)
Prompt: 134- Delectable
Warnings: None
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1,785
Summary: Kittara always jumps without looking. How far will JD follow?
“JD?” a voice called. He glanced at Mr. Brannick, and turned when he got a dismissive nod. He’d already dropped off the canteens with some of the supply coordinators, so he turned with a ready smile for Sylph. The Med was as strangely familiar as Mr. Brannick, and Jaleel felt a long forgotten sense of serenity when he was around her. “I needed to ask you something, would you come with me to the Med bay?”
JD nodded. Sylph seemed to have picked up on Mistress Kittara’s attempts to reintroduce him to regular society, but where Mistress Kittara was naturally a leader, unused to needing permission let alone asking for compliance, Miss Sylph always asked him if he would like to do whatever it was she needed done. She knew he viewed the questions as a soft, polite way of phrasing an order, but that tiny bit of respect flushed his cheeks every time. Once they were in the Med bay, Sylph pulled out a stool and sat to face him. He’d automatically settled on the bed. Every time he saw her in the Med bay that bed was where he’d ended.
“Now, you have to know that this is your choice, JD,” Sylph started. JD nodded. She was being very serious today, more so than usual for her. “Someone has come to me with a request to use your DNA to fertilize an egg for her.”
JD blinked. “My child?” he asked.
“Yes,” Sylph nodded. “And the pregnancy is going to have consequences outside of just a child.” Sylph knew that JD was intelligent; she was hoping that he would ask the right questions.
There was a sad light in JD’s eyes. “She doesn’t want a baby just to have a baby?” Damn. Sylph knew JD loved children. Most of the crew knew how much JD loved children. The young man seemed to have no slave mentalities at all when a child was talking with him or an infant slept in his arms. There was something that strengthened inside of him every time was with children, and Sylph could do a lot of damage to JD and Kittara if she handled this badly.
“She does want the child,” Sylph hastened to reassure the man. “And she wished for no other father than you.” She held her breath as JD’s face and body slid back into neutral attentiveness. JD’s bland focus had been a constant for nearly two months, but she was beginning to learn the subtle emotions of her friend. “But there are outside factors that led to her making this choice now.” Sylph leaned forward, trying to push the thoughts into JD’s head.
“Mistress Kittara?” He asked. Sylph smiled, relieved that she didn’t have to blatantly break confidentiality, not that Kittara had asked for it. JD tipped his head to the side, eyes falling to the floor. “How will a pregnancy affect the betrothal?” Sylph could have kissed the man. He was every bit as quick as she’d come to expect, and she suspected that he really would choose to protect his Mistress above following her whim this time.
“It will push back the official binding of the caravans,” Sylph said. Then she saw it: a flicker of emotion. She couldn’t tell if it was anger or joy, but it was something that she had not seen in JD before. “The Council will likely push the marriage through, despite the pregnancy, though.”
JD frowned at her for a long moment, thinking, and Sylph knew that somewhere, in the back of his mind and hidden by horrible experiences through his young years, he could have been as polished a politician as some of the Council members. He was dissecting the ramifications even farther than Sylph had, she suspected. Where would he come out?
“This baby won’t stop the arrangement?” he asked. His green eyes met and held hers, and she felt caged power rattling at the chains.
“Not with the Council backing it,” she said. She couldn’t figure JD out sometimes. He tended to fade into the background, a good servant, unseen and unnoticed, prompt and thorough, and Sylph knew that only a few people had seen his moments of self-possession, where he grabbed your attention with nothing more than the way he held his head. She kept wondering what he had been before falling into slavery for there was no doubt that he had not been born to it. He nodded, a gently regal move very similar to Kittara when she was playing at being diplomatic.
“Then she can have my child,” he said, holding out his finger. Sylph was reaching for the blood syringe before she’d realized he’d chosen the opposite of what she’d been hoping. But then, there was a softly wistful, sad look lingering in JD’s eyes, and Sylph realized that once the marriage had been established, he would likely never have another chance to have a child with Kittara. And everyone on the ship had seen how fast JD had fallen in love with their captain. They all knew that he would probably never do anything about it, either.
Oh, dear. She took the blood sample and sent him back to Kittara’s chambers. This could be one of Kittara’s greatest ideas, or one of her worst ever disasters.
**
A child. Kittara couldn’t quite believe that she’d made the request, honestly, and she certainly couldn’t believe that JD had granted it. A giddy feeling, fluttering about somewhere south of her heart, had her grinning at every mother and child she passed. Some of the women gave her sly smirks, and Kittara knew that her delectable little secret was likely twittering in the ears of her crew. It didn’t matter. Because she’d felt JD’s gaze much more heavily for the past few days, and it didn’t unnerve her like it had barely a month ago. In fact, every time she sensed JD so fully focused on her, she could feel her shoulders pulling back, her spine straightening to stand tall, her confidence positively bubbling with some strange joy. Pride tugged her head up, and she couldn’t help but imagine herself as a lioness preening under the attention of a strong male.
But a child. How had she come up with such a hare-brained idea? Especially as she and her crew closed in on the last, tenacious hide-outs of the pirates. They were going into battle, and she wanted to be compromised by pregnancy? Her crew would make her sit the battle out; children were nigh on sacred to her people, and she would never be able to justify endangering the in-vitro heir in such a way. Of course, this first child was not guaranteed to be Heir. The golden eyes were only passed down once, and JD’s genetics might not support the necessary coding for her first-born to be the Heir to the Clans. Kittara rather hoped he or she would get JD’s bright green, really. Even if she would then have no other recourse but having a child or two through Geraint; disgusted as the thought made her, the arrogant man was from a very prominent family line.
So, here she sat, watching Sylph mix and separate and mix again in the small room off of the Med lab. That was going to be her viable embryo in just another few minutes. She looked down at JD, comfortably settled at her feet, and couldn’t help but wonder what was going through his head? Why had he agreed? Was there some reason or did he really still feel so trapped and caged that he could not deny Kittara any random urge that overcame her? She had thought he was getting better: he’d begun to venture into the ship without her or Cetlan at his side, had stopped flinching every time she raised her voice, and had even questioned her. Once. He’d nearly collapsed at her feet, trembling in fear, but he’d talked back to her. That was good. Yet, there he sat, seemingly at peace with the universe, at her feet.
Kittara wasn’t blind. She’d known that JD would never again be able to interact with other people on quite the same levels as regular society, but she’d hoped that he could relearn things that she considered to be basic rights. Like understanding that his opinions and wants and needs should be respected if not always granted. But maybe she was being too idealistic. Cetlan liked to tell her that she saw the world as she wanted it to be and not how it truly was. Was that what she was doing with JD? Was she pushing him out of a comfortable place that he may want or need in a way she could never understand? She had wanted to give him a child. She knew that a lot of his recent solo adventures nearly always ended at the nursery, and Kittara peeked in on him every so-often, saw his naturally gentle, soothing influence surrounded by children. It was a sight that she wanted to see every day for the rest of her life, honestly.
But did JD want children of his own? Would he accept that he was a father, take on the responsibility of another life depending on him and his decisions? If he couldn’t make those decisions, would this hurt his foundling image of himself? Make him suffer needlessly? Kittara really hated it when her unexpected decisions suddenly sprouted devastating consequences.
“So, here’s the zygote.” Sylph turned around brandishing a syringe like it was going to cure the common cold. Kittara knew that there wasn’t much to see about one fertilized egg, but the blob in the middle of some viscous liquid was a strange disappointment. She glanced down and saw JD intently focused on the small, glass vial.
“JD?” she asked. His green eyes looked up at her. He seemed expectant and excited, and she smiled down at him. She couldn’t ask him if he was sure. Anything that made him look like a happily nervous wreck was good enough for her. She nodded to Sylph and laid back. The pale green ceiling had nothing on the jade green eyes now hovering over Sylph’s shoulder. No going back, she thought as Sylph pressed the vial to the soft skin of her stomach. A gentle pressure and drawn out hiss, and the Med was bustling around the bed and unrolling screens.
“You’ll stay right there for another two hours, Captain,” Sylph snapped before Kittara had even thought of rolling over. “We need to make sure the zygote implants properly.” JD’s fingers brushed Kittara’s wrist. She turned her hand and threaded her fingers through his. No going back.
~JJ~
x-posted at tamingthemuse